From spreadsheet to franchise owner for Angie Collins
Like any good accountant, it was a spreadsheet that finally convinced Angie Collins to take the plunge on a Martin & Co franchise. Angie completed her purchase of Martin & Co's Canterbury office early in 2021 – her first foray into property and estate agency after a hugely successful career as a Chartered Accountant and business consultant.
“I wasn’t seeing any great growth in my pension pot,” she explains, “and as an accountant, I had completed many a spreadsheet that backed this up! But I knew property was a great industry with a real future and I have always had a keen interest in the sector.
“I also missed the cut and thrust of running my own business, so when the opportunity came up with Martin & Co, I had to go for it.”
Although Angie’s more recent work as a consultant in management and operations was focused on the needs of other businesses, the successful Canterbury catering company she owned before moving into consultancy had given her a taste of being her own boss.
But she knew she would need support when venturing into estate agency – which led her towards franchising.
The Martin & Co brand is well established and from speaking to other franchisees, I learned that they feel well supported and could see they’d built great businesses under the brand.
"As with any business purchase, the most important and time-consuming part of the process is to ensure you complete good due diligence – I spoke to as many franchisees as I could and I was also more than prepared to get my brain working and learn about the considerable amount of property legislation that now exists."
Although the pandemic did its best to disrupt elements of Angie’s purchase, she was backed throughout the process by The Property Franchise Group’s team.
The support from the team at head office unquestionably helped to get the resale over the line more swiftly.
“It was a real shame that there were no face-to-face meetings and training because of the restrictions, but the standard of the remote training was high, and the sessions were brilliantly set up. The franchisor was an excellent bridge between the seller and I and this helped to move things along efficiently.”
Now Angie is set up and managing her new portfolio of rental properties alongside her team, her focus has switched to maintaining and growing the Canterbury office’s superb reputation.
“Everyone deserves a nice place to call home and as their most important purchase and commitment, I want to ensure our customers get the best possible experience.”
